Metanarratives Of Indian Neo-Femininity In Netflix: A Semiotic Analysis Of Delhi Crime And Bhaag Beanie Bhaag

Abstract

The rapidly evolving Over the Top (OTT) media has unsettled the conventional entertainment paradigms and revolutionized the content consumption dynamics. Demand-driven OTT content favorably characterize Indian women as determined to shatter the glass ceiling. However, web series are not one-stop-all solutions since representations are fertile habitats for nuanced exploration of female characters, arguing prescription of interpretation or analysis. The academic inquiry through semiotic analysis of the Netflix releases, Delhi Crime (2019) and Bhaag Beanie Bhaag (2020), appropriates neo-feminine traits to examine the shifting dynamics of women’s representations and the visual medium's ecosystem. Delhi Crime, a popular crime drama that carefully busted the gender trope of the mythical damsel and the male knight-rescuer, and Bhaag Beanie Bhaag, a less popular comedy series based on the humorous socio-cultural climate of self-introspection and discovery as a life statement, are analyzed utilizing the framework of Five Factor Model's big five qualities. A study of 34 semi-structured personal interviews correlated the big five qualities to new femininity, interpreting webisodes as intertextual manifestations of contemporary women. The findings provide significant insights into neo-feminine manifestations and contribute to the wider discourse on women's studies in the digital era thus disentangling screen webs that integrate onscreen Indian women into every-day lives.